LeBron James Ad Asks for It
From WSJ.comIn an arty, soul-searching 90-second Nike commercial released in October, basketball star LeBron James asks repeatedly, "What should I do?"
Angry fans, in loud and blistering terms, have been telling him.
Myriad remixes and spoofs of the ad have attracted more views on the Web than the original Nike Inc. campaign, according to research from online-video measurement firm Visible Measures Corp.
While the original version and direct copies of the ad-which attempt to deal head-on with Mr. James's controversial decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers to play for the Miami Heat-have generated 5.1 million online video views, spoofs and parodies have generated 5.8 million views, Visible Measures says. The figures don't include views of Nike's paid advertising.
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In a 2 paragraph response (a minimum of 5 sentences for each paragraph), answer the following questions. In paragraph # 1, explain what a parody is. Is it a positive or a negative to have parodies of an ad? (Think Old Spice). Why do you feel this way? Be specific with your thoughts. In paragraph # 2, discuss how these parodies can help Nike but hurt James? Also, how should James and Nike respond to the parodies? Be specific with your thoughts.
Please sign your name to the bottom of your blog entry.
Lebron James Nike ad
ReplyDeleteThe Lebron James Nike ad has generated substantial interest internationally. It is a 90 second commercial in which Lebron asks what he should do. I think that spoofs are positive because they generate more interest in the product and the original video that is being spoofed. Some people will watch a spoof and think “hey, I want to see the original.” Either way, whoever sees the Lebron 8 shoe will automatically look at the shoe itself and think it is a nice shoe. These spoofs are a good way for Nike to get free advertising on the internet and get people to see their products.
I think this could be very helpful to Nike but detrimental to Lebron James. This obviously can help Nike because of the substantial ads and space the spoofs are giving, but it could hurt Lebron’s image. His image is already damaged from his decision, a 1 hour special where he just talked about himself, but the negative portrayals of him can make him out to be someone bad. He is a person nonetheless and deserves to be treated a little more fairly. It was wrong to do what he did to Cleveland, but if you look at it, he just left for a better opportunity.
Joey Dolan
Lebron James Nike ad
ReplyDeleteA parody is a comment on something that has happened. I think it depends but the Lebron one was negative. By having this on the new Lebron ad it can make Cleveland or other fans ever more mad at what he did since now he has a commercial. But the old spice commercials with the other athletes was not that bad since they did not do something like Lebron did like leave a town the way he did. So I think it depends on the commercial.
I don’t think this could help either Nike or Lebron it could not help Nike since the still use Lebron as a advertisement and that could get people mad at him and not buy the shoes. Also it could hurt Lebron by the commercial he made and not have people forget what he did this past summer. Then he could even get more boos on the road. I personally would not get anything that has to do with Lebron since what he did was kind of bad. Some other people out there may do the same thing
Keith krause
I think parodies are a good idea. Parodies if approved by whoever the person is doing a parody of can be fun. Parodies seen on T.V if are funny can attract many customers. Costomers like funny commercials and things that entertain them. They will show their friends the ad too if its funny. Or posting it through facebook and other ways so many people can see it.
ReplyDeleteThe parody would help nike because people would see the commercial and want the products. Its good for nike because it is another commercial using a famous athlete. Both Nike and James should respond to this positivly. James shouldn't have agreed to the commercial if it was going to hurt him. Nike should like it because either way they are making money and have another commercial places.
ANDREW FOSTER
Lebron james is confused and needs to listen to the fans. A Parody can be a positive thing because some people can relate to it and like it. This is sp because they know it thus they can relate to it. It can be a negative thing because it can be called copywrite and other television stations or other commercial ads will be mad.
ReplyDeleteThese Parody’s can be good for Nike because they are getting promoted and thus more people will buy their products and they will reap the benefits and money. This can be bad for LeBron James if he promotes the wrong thing or something that makes the viewers mad then he will be the one who is blamed not Nike. LeBron James and Nike should be careful with these parody’s because it doesn’t always lead to a good thing. They should review and think them over before considering them.
Parody is making fun of an ad, movie, song ect. It either takes the context of the work or changes the characters/setting, or it keeps the characters/settings and changes the context to make it funny. Parodies are usually positive because it is so funny you either want to go out and buy the product or go out and go watch the movies. Sometimes is is negative because the parody is only bashing or making so much fun of the product that you don’t want to have anything to do with it.
ReplyDeleteThis Parody can help Nike because its not really saying anything about the brand personally. It would hurt Nike if the meaning was to downgrade the quality of the brand, but its not. However this can hurt James because it is basically showing how disloyal he is to a team which could make heat fans not get to attached to him. James on the other hand takes it very well and just brushes it off his shoulders because he knows that while people disapprove of his decision a lot of other people approve.
A parody is taking someone else’s artistic work and making fun of or ridiculing it. I think parodies are negative for the most part, but there can be occasions where they are positive. I feel this was because something you make and publish or put out there is something you feel you did a terrific job on. You wouldn’t want that certain product or multimedia item getting made fun of and attacked negatively. The only way I can see parodies being positive is if they give attention the opposing side (like politics).
ReplyDeleteIn this situation, I feel like they really hurt Lebron James and make him look bad. It doesn’t do anything to NIKE except give them more attention. So basically, it hurts Lebron, but benefits NIKE. Lebron has reason to be upset because all these parodies make him look like an idiot and a traitor, but then again, he did it to himself. NIKE shouldn’t do anything, because after all, it doesn’t hurt them one bit.
-LUIS REYES
A parody is when somebody does a remake of something and it gets very popular. This can be done with songs and videos and commercials. Some examples of this is the song “white and nerdy” by Weird Al’ the remake of the song Ridin’ Dirty by Chamillionare. In the song Weird Al’ uses the same beat and everything but changes the lyrics to make fun of the original song. That is what a parody is.
ReplyDeleteParodies can help Nike because it brings more attention to there campaign. People will hear about these parodies of there commercials and want to see the original commercial. Parodies can hurt James though because they mock his decision and make fun of him. Nike and James should just ignore parodies because addressing them wouldn’t help the situation. That is what I think about parodies.
Abel Henok
A parody is basically a remake of a video thats, most of the time, making fun of the original stuff from the video. For instance, wierd al yankovich does a lot of parodies making fun of hit songs. It can go either way for an ad, sometimes it makes the buyers laugh and be interested. Also it can make them angry and understand the downsides of the product or person. I personally like parodies because they entertain me and it doesn't really make different of anything because everything has there downs and the parodies just point those out.
ReplyDeleteThese parodies can help out Nike a lot because it brings the attention of a lot of people when parodies are made. It entertains me more then the original make most of the time. Its gonna hurt James because it shows everybody what he did, but people don't take parodies in a serious note usually. They take them as jokes. James and Nike shouldn't even strike back at the parodies because it'll just cause a huge controversy. Its better to let it go and act not to care.
Jeremy Wagner
A parody is a spoof or a mock up on the original product. Parodies are seen everywhere these days from YouTube to SNL. Personally I think they are funny and allow people to laugh at a situation that isn’t always laughable. The internet has made parodies a hit and they will keep coming. I think parodies are good and they are giving the situation more publicity so more people know about the issues. Once I watch a parody I want to see the original so this is positive for the issue or product.
ReplyDeleteI feel this way because if a parody is being made then you know the advertisement or issue is been looked at. If the parody is shown on national TV then you know many people are talking about it. If the parody shows up on YouTube, no a days, could project millions of viewers. The parodies on LeBron can both help and hurt both his image and Nike’s image. Most of the mock ups put James in a negative light which also puts Nike done. But also Nike is getting more air time which is never bad.
Maggie Sawyers
A parody is a copy of a video or piece of work, which sort of adds a twist on how the video is really seen. A parody is a way for people to sort of get their real opinion of the video out and show the whole world. I think that when using a parody about someone or something, it could be a positive or negative thing. When it comes to a parody, it all depends on the person who is making the video. I think with the Lebron James parody, that it would fall under a negative parody because; most people feel lebron cheated them in some way. In many ways, I think that the city of Cleveland thinks that lebron shouldn’t have made the video at all.
ReplyDeleteI think that these parodies could help Nike because; it gives them a new way to make their commercials, and a new way for them to get the word out on new products. Nike can use these parodies to their advantage and help increase the productivity of their commercials. These parodies could hurt Lebron James however in many ways. These parodies where aimed at lebron in a bad way, they weren’t meant to help him increase his shoe sales. They were meant to show how the people really feel about him leaving Cleveland. I think that in this case, Lebron is the only one that needs to fix this and lash back at these parodies. And I think that many more parodies are on the way, even more that will affect lebron in a harsher way.
-Brandon Smith
A parody is some form of making fun of the original of something. For example, the movie Spaceballs is a parody of the Star Wars saga. A parody is usually a bad thing because it is because the original deserves to be made fun of. A parody of an ad can be a good thing though. A parody can mean that the ad caused interest and caught people’s attention.
ReplyDeleteThese parodies can help Nike because Nike is getting a lot of attention and publicity. These parodies will hurt James on the other hand because they are making fun of him and hurting his reputation. There is not really anything that Nike or James can do in response to these parodies. They just need to let the whole situation be played out. James should respond to these parodies on the court, by playing well and maybe even start winning like the Heat are supposed to. One thing people can’t argue against is stats.
~Matt G~
I think parody is a bad thing for a business. It sometimes can be a good thing. The only good thing about is that it gets your product out there but in a bad way. People making fun of your product shows that your product isn’t good enough that people have to make fun of it online or on television. I feel this way because mostly do parody of music and movies. I remember seeing a parody of bedrock by Tim Delaghetto.
ReplyDeleteParodies help the business but hurt the one that’s being targeted. It helps nike because it gets their product out there. It hurts james because it makes him look like a fool. Lebron as a advertisement and that could get people mad at him and not buy the shoes. Also it could hurt Lebron by the commercial he made and not have people forget what he did this past summer.
A parody is essentially somebody mocking someone’s previous work. Such as movies like “Scary Movie” mocking the scary movies it includes in it. It’s not always a negative thing; in some cases it can be positive. In the case of advertisements I’d say for the most part it is a bad thing. Despite the fact it can still bring in some customers, people are essentially mocking a company’s hard work, which really means that those people don’t take that company seriously.
ReplyDeleteThese parodies hurt James a lot because it allows the fans to take cheap shots at LeBron and diminish him image with his fans. They can help Nike because the parodies will still help bring in customers but it could hurt LeBron in the long range because some people might not want to support a brand who supports LeBron, but that can go both ways. I think they should respond to these parodies by creating a commercial or advertisement that displays LeBron as a modest character who does not think he is the greatest as it does in the ads. Also I would think about retracting his name of “the King” because that name makes him seem more arrogant, even though he has the right to be it can still turn fans away. Also he is not on the Cavaliers anymore so he is not “the King”.
-Thomas Baird
A parody is a remake, or spoof of a previous video or song. Parodies can be a great thing, if someone sees a parody before they see the original clip they might look up the original clip and add to its total number of views. Parodies can also be risky if they dont have permission to use the contents of the original video. The negative effects would come to Lebron James not to Nike.
ReplyDeletePeople will watch the parody and be given a bias opinion on LeBron James' actions but Nike, will flourish and gain from the publicity. They will get more views on their videos and make more money from the campaign. James' name may be tarnished or people may view him differntly because of his actions or what the parodies say about him.
Luke Gardner
A parody is someone who pretty much makes a remix of a commercial or video, but instead of adding in interrupts they reenact it themselves attempting to show their own message. A parody is an extremely positive effect for a commercial, while some may attempt to reenact it with a demeaning message; it spreads the word of your ad, for free. If someone creates a good spoof of it and goes viral, everyone will know of that and the original ad. This is because getting free advertisement will boost sales while one person’s video if funny may cause sales as well for inside jokes and spoofs of that spoof!
ReplyDeleteAll of spoofs out there will help Nike for sure, but what will the effects be on the star of the commercial? Lebron James may come out of this commercial a bit beat up. While spoofs may get James a ton of media the chances are that the spoofs will be directly insulting him and his decisions, people may add things into their spoofs and put their ideas in to other viewers of Lebron’s intentions. James and Nike should just be quiet when it comes to responding to the spoofs, the one thing they do not want to do is to come out and act offended in any way. Their best bet is to just let things in the communities work themselves out
Andrew Frawley
A parody is imitating a piece of work and intending to turn it in to a joke or make fun of it. Most of the time, a parody involves a serious piece of work that someone else takes and remixes to make it in to a comedy. I believe a parody is great because it not only makes people laugh, but also attracts attention to the original piece of work. The benefit is mutual. Some examples of parodies that are extremely funny are the Scary Movies. They not only make money for the director, but also make people want to go see the original movie. That way, the people know what the movie is making fun of. Another example of a famous parody artist is Weird Al Yankovic. He has CDs dedicated to parodies (which are also known as spoofs). Three of his most well-known parodies are Constipated, White and Nerdy, and EBay. He has also made other songs such as Confessions Part 3. Overall, I believe that parodies are beneficial for both companies and generate more business for all the companies involved.
ReplyDeleteThe parodies about Nike and LeBron James are not as hurtful as they are beneficial, as I have said in the first paragraph. These parodies will help Nike because it generates more business for them. These parodies are not making fun of Nike, but rather just showing off their products even more. LeBron James is the only one that could possibly be hurt by this. Parodies are meant as jokes, but the ones about LeBron James are practically an insult. Most likely, these ads will hurt James’ reputation, making him look like a sissy. In my opinion, the best thing that Nike and LeBron James can do is just wait it out. If they responded negatively to the parodies, it would just make it worse for them. The best thing they can do is just wait it out.
A parody is something created to mock, make fun of, or comment to a original work. For example, south park’s parody of Lebron James’s ad. I think that a parody can go both ways. It can be positive because it keeps your topic in the spotlight, and it also makes everyone aware of what you are talking about. But it can be negative because it can contradict your opinion and it may hurt your business by doing so.
ReplyDeleteThe parodies can help Nike because people are going to keep talking about the company. Also it can help Nike because if people are talking about Nike, then they are more likely to buy something made by Nike, increasing their profit. The parodies can hurt Lebron’s image because it is making fun of his decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers. James should not respond to the parodies because it is going to hurt is image even more than already has. He is already the sixth most disliked sports figure. But Nike should respond because it will keep them in the spotlight.
A parody can be good or bad, either way you are going to get publicity. But the bad thing is that it is usually targeted extremely against the original. Probably 99% of LeBron's parodies are bad. There is nothing else for it. It can pretty much only be bad. Too bad, James. You might get a nice ad here and there, but usually it is dead bad. He will just be ripped to shreds.
ReplyDeleteAn apology? That is the only way he will ever dig himself out of this hole. And then its only a 50 50 chance of success. I don't know if it will work. Nike is doing famously. But if LeBron doesn't get a break soon, his reputation will be tarnished for a long time. Until he wins really big. Like playing in the Championship. Nike is getting pretty good publicity . Not too rough on them. LeBron's reaction can only be an apology to all these hateful fans. BOOM
DANNY MARCINEK
Parody is something that you make you fun of or humiliate. I think it could be both positive and negative because if a company uses parody they could make fun of that company and probably get their customers which could be positive for the company using it but negative for who it is being used on. I feel this way because it is used a lot especially in movies.
ReplyDeleteIt can help Nike because it could attract a lot of viewers and they could like the products their showing, but I think it could be bad for Lebron James because he is the one is being made fun of. So it could bring bad reputation to his name.
A parody is a comical remake of something, designed to make fun of it or point out its flaws. Are parodies good or bad? I think it depends. Parodies of the ‘Rise’ ad are negative, but the parodies of the Old Spice commercials are harmless and funny.
ReplyDeleteIf people see the parodies, they’ll naturally want to watch the originals as well. That is good for the company, because that’s promotion. But it’s also negative because it’s bad publicity for James. All the parodies of the ‘Rise’ ad are negative and make you think badly about LeBron. If the fans don’t like him, and his popularity drops, he’ll get less sponsorships, less endorsement deals, and people won’t buy his jersey. It hurts the public’s opinion of him. It’s no good. I don’t think Nike or LeBron should respond to it, it will only give the parodiers more fuel.
THAT KID DIL AMERKHAIL
A parody is making fun of an advertisement, song, movie or professional sports. I think that it is either side of the wording of the work or changes the characters or setting or keeps the characters or settings and changes the context to make it funny or even funnier. Some parodies are usually positive, because they are so funny that sometimes you either want to go out and buy the product or watch the thing being advertised. Sometimes parodies can be negative, because it can be making so much fun of the product that you don’t want to have anything to do with it.
ReplyDeleteParodies can help Nike in the way that, people would go out and buy the products not just because the athlete is wearing it but because they really want the product. It can hurt James in the way that he could lose more and more of his fans, maybe because of what he is wearing or doing in the advertisements. Nike shouldn’t do anything and keep making their advertisements, because if it’s not hurting the company then they should just leave it alone. James should do something to make his old fans, become true fans again. Nike and James should change the way the advertisements are worded or played, because that is what could be hurting James and maybe later on even the company.
- Anna Vallejo
The Lebron James Nike adverticement has generated substantial interest internationally. I think that parody are positive because they generate more interest in the product and the original video that is being watched by millions of people. look at the shoe itself and think it is a nice shoe.
ReplyDeleteI think it can hurt both lebron nike if the keep making this kind of ad. and he need to stop saying what shoul i do cause he did what he wanted he moved to the heat just to get more money and be with a good players like dewend wed
chirs bosh and other players. lebron need some things to get the fans to like him. Also he need
the help from nike campanie.
dagmawe teklu
A parody is something that you did in the past that your not sure you can do it again. I think that this advertisement is positive in a sertain way. like he is trying to get his word out that he has to deside where he goes not the world. Also people call him a villin for leaveing the cavs. I think people are just mad because the cavs were there team because they were winning and now that lebron left they are losing.
ReplyDeleteLebron is helping nike because during the advertisement he was still showing nike and also he plays with nike and people notise that. Also Lebron doesnt have as much fans as he did when he was with the cavs. People still like him but not enough to support him and his shoes.
A parody is a remake of a video but slightly changing the content to make fun of the first video. Parades are mostly a negative ting because it makes fun of something. But any publicity is good publicity. Publicity event though can be negative is can help out a company greatly.
ReplyDeleteThe reason this heart lebron is because it was making fun of him betraying this old team. It helped nice because the bad publicity made people want to watch the video more and since Nike was in it made people want to buy Nike stuff.The bad publicity made nice more popular.
Tommy Sklopan
A parody is basically when someone replicates something in order to make fun of it. Having a parody of an ad can be both positive and negative. The positive is the add will attract more viewers but it will be making fun of it so people wont take it seriously. I have notice that parodies get more views than the original ads. I think the effect is more harmful than helpful.
ReplyDeleteThese parodies help nike because it gets their name more recognized but it hurts Lebron because it attacks his dignity and his character. I think the best way to respond to the videos is to play his best game on the court to gain respect. I don’t really see how else he could fight back. The only way to fix it is to keep quiet and play well